Heaven's Light and Hellfire
by October Star
Summary: Jane is starting a new year at Sherwood University. Everything starts out perfect. But when two teenagers are found dead and her friend, Tiana, goes missing Jane and her friends join The Hunters to search for the beasts who are terrorizing their town. ON HIATUS.
1. Chapter 1

It was just about ten o'clock when Jasmine and Megara arrived in Sherwood, Florida. The sun had set a couple hours ago and the college town was bustling with students going to the local club and bars. Jasmine looked around excitedly at all of the people. She had always been a social butterfly and thrived in the spotlight. Megara, on the other, hand was the complete opposite and felt uncomfortable among a lot of people. A drunken frat boy let out a loud yell as he ran passed Jasmine and Megara. Megara jumped out of his way and rolled her eyes.

"I hate college kids," Megara muttered. "Why are we here?"

"You know we can't stay in the same place too long," Jasmine said. "Kida decided this was the best place for us to move."

"Kida thought the best place for us to reside was a college town in _Florida_?"

Jasmine shrugged. "I don't understand it, either. But, she knows best and I'm not going to question her."

"Someone should question why she thought it was a good idea for a clan of vampires to live in the _Sunshine _State," Megara muttered.

"Hey, ladies!"

Megara and Jasmine turned around to see two boys standing behind them. Megara raised an eyebrow; no way were they in college. They barely looked seventeen.

"Hello," Jasmine said, sweetly.

"You ladies lookin' for a good time?" The boy with blonde hair asked.

"Oh, yes." Meagra's voice was dripping with sarcasm, but they didn't notice.

"What did you have in mind?" Jasmine asked.

"There's a little abandon shack in the woods," The boy with the black hair said. "Why don't we all go out there for a... _private _party?"

"That sounds perfect," Jasmine said.

Megara refrained from cringing when the blonde boy draped his arm over her shoulders. Humans were such a low, disgusting race. The four of them wandered deep into the woods until they found the abandoned shack. Jasmine smiled to herself as she thought about how easy disposing of their bodies would be. The door to the shack was boarded up, so they climbed in through the window. The inside was very small, only one room with a part sectioned off that must have been a kitchen or bathroom at one point. Jasmine and the dark-haired boy walked over to the sectioned off area, while Megara and the blonde stayed by the window.

"This place is kind of scary," Jasmine said, snuggling close to the boy.

The boy smiled at her like she was an easy target and put his arm around her. "I'll protect you."

Jasmine brought her mouth down to his neck. "But, who's going to protect you?" she whispered in his ear.

Before he knew what was happening, Jasmine had her hand over his mouth and her fangs in his neck. The boy struggled beneath her, but he was no match for Jasmine's strength. When he was dead, she lifted her head and licked the blood off her lips.

Meanwhile, Megara was sitting in front of the window as the blonde ran his hand over her thigh.

"Please stop," Megara said. "I have a boyfriend."

The blonde squeezed her thigh. "I can do you better than he can. Babe, I'll make you scream."

"Not likely," Megara said. "I'm going to make _you _scream."

Megara grabbed the blonde by the neck and sank her fangs into his skin. Just as she predicted, the boy screamed in pain. He managed to wiggle away from her and tried climbing out the window. Megara laughed as she pulled him back inside. She pinned him against the wall and finished feeding off him, then let his lifeless body fall to the floor.

Jasmine and Megara dragged the bodies out behind the shack and made it look like they were attacked by an animal. They then headed back to the main road and walked to the house where the rest of the clan was waiting for them.

The house was an old plantation-style house. It was two stories and painted white, with black shutters and a red door. It wasn't the nicest house they had ever stayed in, but it wasn't bad. The girls made their way up the brick steps and went inside.

They were immediately greeted by a high-pitched scream. A petite girl with long red hair was running down the stairs towards the door. Vanessa was standing at the top of the stairs, laughing. Vanessa jumped over the railing, landing perfectly on her feet behind the redhead. Vanessa liked to play with her victims before killing them. She and her soulmate, Gaston, were the kind of vampires who liked to kill for fun. Megara didn't like humans very much and found herself amused by Vanessa and Gaston's games.

"Your scream is annoying," Vanessa said to the girl. "I'm going to rip your voice right out of your pretty little throat."

"Vanessa!"

Vanessa was just about to bite the girl, but looked up as Kida walked down the stairs. She stopped next to Vanessa and Vanessa let go of the girl. The girl looked up at Kida with wide eyes.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Kida said as she brushed her white hair off her face, revealing a blue tattoo under her left eye. "What is your name?"

The girl took a step towards the door, debating whether or not she should say anything. Finally, she whispered, "Ariel."

Kida stared intensely into Ariel's eyes. "Ariel, you will leave here and forget everything that happened."

Ariel nodded and walked out of the house. Each of the vampires had the ability to hypnotize humans and read their minds.

Kida turned sharply to face Vanessa. "Vanessa, I have told you repeatedly that you do not kill in our haven. This is your last warning. Next time, I will have your fangs removed."

Vanessa put her hand over her mouth. "Yes, ma'am." She turned and ran back upstairs.

Kida shook her head, a smile creeping across her face. "Good evening, girls," she said to Jasmine and Megara.

"Good evening," Jasmine and Megara replied in unison.

"I trust you fed?" Kida asked and the girls nodded. "Good. I'm holding a conference in the library. Meet me there."

Jasmine and Megara nodded, then walked down the hall to the large library at the back of the house. The other vampires were already gathered, waiting for Kida. Gaston was leaning against the wall, with his arms across his chest. Jim was pretending to look at the books on the shelves, but that was just his way of avoiding having to socialize with everyone else. Helga was sitting on Kida's desk, with her short skirt hiked up, showing off her perfectly toned legs. Eric and Naveen were standing in the corner, talking excitedly about something. Adam was sitting in the armchair, sulking as usual. Aladdin was sitting on the couch and Jasmine hurried over to join him. She kissed her soulmate and snuggled up close to him. Kida and Vanessa walked in a couple minutes later. Everyone turned to face Kida, while Vanessa slipped over to Gaston.

"I am going to make this brief," Kida began. "As you all know, Ferdinand was killed by The Hunter a few years ago. Up 'till this point, we haven't been able to track him down because we don't know anything about him."

"He's good, Kida," Jasmine said. "I haven't seen a hunter like him since Van Helsing."

Kida nodded. "This hunter may actually be better than Van Helsing. But, I have been informed that he is here in Sherwood. We need to do whatever it takes to find him and kill him."


	2. Chapter 2

_"And so the lion fell in love with the lamb." _

"Stupid lamb," Charlotte said, sighing.

Roxanne rolled her eyes. "Please! Vampires don't fall in love with humans. They _eat _humans."

Charlotte had been lying on her stomach on the living room floor, but she now propped herself up on her hands and turned to face Roxanne. Roxanne was stretched out on the couch, with her feet dangling over the arm. She was reading _The Rum Diary, _which her English professor had assigned his classes to read.

"Honestly, Roxanne, do you always have to be so morbid?" Charlotte asked.

"Humans are just food to vampires. Would you fall in love with a cow?" Roxanne asked, not looking up from her book.

Charlotte made a face. "You're so weird." She turned back around and continued watching her movie.

Jane had been sitting at the desk in her bedroom, working on her art history homework. But, with her room being adjacent to the living room, she couldn't help over hearing her roommates' conversation. Jane smiled to herself and shook her head. Charlotte was your typical perky blonde, while Roxanne was a little more grounded and easily annoyed. The two of them shared a room and were constantly getting into arguments. It was times like those that Jane was glad their dorm room was set up more like an apartment and they weren't all crammed into one small area.

Just then, the door opened and Jane's other roommate, Tiana, walked in. She was dressed in her waitress uniform and her hair was a mess. Tiana was one of the few students at Sherwood University that didn't really have a lot of money, so she had taken a job at the campus cafe to pay for her books and tuition. Tiana gently hit Roxanne's legs and Roxanne immediately moved them so Tiana could sit down on the arm of the couch. Jane stood up and walked to the doorway of the bedroom.

"How was work?" Jane asked, leaning against the door frame.

Tiana sighed. "It was work. But, one of my customers told me some unsettling news today."

Charlotte paused her movie and sat up to face Tiana. "What was it?"

"I guess two teenage boys were killed by a wild animal last night," Tiana said. "Their throats were ripped open."

Jane felt a little uneasy. "Where?"

"In the woods, not too far from here," Tiana said.

"Did they find the animal?" Roxanne asked, closing her book.

"I don't think so," Tiana replied. "They don't even know what kind of animal did it."

"Could have been a vampire," Roxanne said. Roxanne was very much into vampires and knew more about them than any other person Jane had ever met. Roxanne was convinced they were real.

"Vampires don't exist," Charlotte said, turning off her movie. "Anyways, I'm gonna get ready for the game."

Jane glanced down at her watch and was surprised to see that it was already six o'clock in the evening. The four girls changed and got ready to go to the football game. Charlotte was dating the quarterback, Hercules. The four girls had been roommates for the past three years and Charlotte had been dating Hercules almost that entire time, so they all have become good friends with Hercules. They go to all of his home games to cheer him on.

Once the girls were ready, they started making their way across campus to the football field. The stands were already crowded and the cheerleaders were getting everyone pumped. The four girls found Tiana's best friend, Belle, fairly easily. She was having difficulty saving their seats, so they hurried up the bleachers to join her.

"Hey, Belle," they greeted.

Belle smiled at them. "Hi, girls!"

Suddenly the crowd got to their feet and started cheering as the football team came out on the field to warm up. Hercules immediately spotted Charlotte- which wasn't hard because she was the only wearing pink instead of the school's colors: black and red- and waved to her. Charlotte blew Hercules a kiss and the rest of them waved at him.

::VV::

After the game, the girls waited for everyone in the crowd to leave, then they sought out to find Hercules. They found him just outside the mens' locker room with another guy from the team and a couple cheerleaders. Charlotte skipped over to Hercules and kissed his cheek. He wrapped his arm around her and she shot the cheerleaders a dirty look.

"Beat it, skanks!" Charlotte said.

The cheerleaders all turned and walked away. Hercules' teammate quickly followed after them.

Hercules chuckled nervously as he ran his hand through his hair. "I don't think that's necessary, Charlotte."

"I don't want anyone trying to steal you away from me," Charlotte said.

Hercules smiled sweetly at his girlfriend. "They can't steal someone who doesn't want to be stolen."

Charlotte giggled and blushed. "We're gonna get going, guys." Before anyone could say anything, Charlotte grabbed Hercules' hand and the two of them walked away.

"What do you think they do together?" Tiana asked.

Roxanne shook her head. "Not much. Charlotte's saving herself for marriage."

Tiana yawned loudly and stretched, seeming to forget she had asked a question. "I'm gonna head back to the dorm and get some sleep."

Belle and Roxanne nodded in agreement.

"You comin', Jane?" Tiana asked.

"Nah. I think I'll take a walk. I've been cooped up inside all day and it's a lovely night," Jane said.

"All right, but be careful." Tiana slipped off her denim jacket and handed to Jane, since she was only wearing a tank top. "Stay away from the woods."

Jane took the jacket and waved at her friends as they headed back towards the dorms. Jane pulled on the jacket and started walking across the parking lot. Downtown Sherwood was only a couple blocks from the campus and Jane decided to head to the coffee shop, Coffee Potts. Tiana had gotten her into mocha cappuccinos and right now she was craving one. As Jane walked down the street, the wind blew and she suddenly felt very chilly. She tried to button up the jacket, but since her boobs were just little bit bigger than Tiana's the jacket was too small for her to close. She wrapped her arms around her body and quickened her pace.

The streets of downtown Sherwood were crowded; everyone was celebrating the Sherwood Panthers' big win. Jane couldn't help getting caught up in the excitement. After all, it was her friend who had brought the team to victory. Jane waved to some of her classmates as she made her way to the coffee shop. When she stepped inside, she was greeted by the strong aroma of coffee. Jane didn't really like coffee, but on a chilly night the smell brought a warm welcome that she was more than happy to accept.

Jane ran her fingers through her hair as a she stood in line at the counter. The barista that night was a girl from Jane's art class, Rapunzel. When it was Jane's turn, she quickly stepped up to the counter and smiled at Rapunzel.

"Hi, Jane!" Rapunzel greeted, cheerfully. "Medium mocha?"

Jane nodded. "No, wait. Actually, make it a small. I gotta get to sleep at some point tonight."

Rapunzel winked and pointed at Jane, showing that she understood, then turned and bounded over to the espresso machine. Rapunzel had long blonde hair which she now had in a high ponytail, that bounced whenever she walked. When she returned, Jane paid her and stuck a couple extra dollars in the tip jar before heading over to the book corner. Jane stood in front of the bookcase with all the journals and sketchbooks. She had more sketchbooks that she knew what to do with, but she still loved to buy new ones. As she scanned the sketchbooks, she spotted one on the lower shelf with blue leather binding. Jane knelt down and pulled it out. It had gold-lined pages and on the front it said, _"The Colors of the Wind Will Lead My Heart to You". _Jane smiled as she ran her finger over the golden font.

"It's beautiful, isn't?"

Jane looked up to see an older woman standing in front of her. She was wearing a purple dress with a white apron. Jane had never met her before, but she guessed the woman was the owner of the coffee shop, Mrs. Potts.

"Yes, it is," Jane replied. "I wish I could afford something like this."

Mrs. Potts nodded. "It seems to be very old. Someone just brought in a few weeks ago and gave it to me to sell." She shrugged, then continued on to talk to her other customers.

Jane looked down at the book, confused; it didn't look very old. She set her drink on the floor next to her and slowly opened the book. She was surprised to see that the pages had somewhat of a brownish tint to them and they were slightly crinkled like they had gotten wet at one point. Somehow, it made Jane want the sketchbook even more. She sighed and placed it back on the shelf.

Out of the blue, Jane's heart started racing. She looked down at her chest, wondering why she felt nervous all of a sudden. She put her hand over her heart and shook her head. She picked up her cup and got to her feet. When she turned to leave, she noticed a young man looking at her. He couldn't have been more than a year or two older than her. He had black hair, blue eyes and pale skin. Jane had to admit he was most handsome man she had ever seen. He smiled at her and she felt her knees go weak. She smiled back at him, but then looked down at the floor, blushing. She took a deep breath and headed out of the coffee shop.

When Jane finally returned to her dorm room, Charlotte and Tiana were asleep, but Roxanne was sitting on the living room floor, applying some black polish to her fingernails. Jane still had a little bit of a caffeine buzz from her mocha and decided to join Roxanne instead of going to bed. Jane and Roxanne didn't have much in common, so Jane wasn't sure what to talk to her about.

Jane cleared her throat. "So, um, do you really think vampires exist?" She knew it was a lame question, but at least it would start a conversation.

Roxanne had been in the middle of blowing on her nails, but stopped and raised an eyebrow at Jane. "Yes..."

Jane nodded. "Um, how would one determine if somebody is actually a vampire?"

"You can't," Roxanne said. "At least, not just by looking at them. It's really easy for vampires to blend in with the rest of us."

**Author's Note: Roxanne is from _A Goofy Movie_ and even though she's a dog in the movie, in my story she's actually human. Also the quote on the front of the sketchbook is from the Disney Princess song, "If You Can Dream". I don't own it.**


	3. Chapter 3

"It's strangely quiet," Esmeralda noted as she and her boyfriend, Phoebus, walked through downtown Sherwood.

Phoebus nodded as he, too, observed the unusually vacant hang-out area. The couple cautiously walked down the street until they found another student.

"Excuse me!" Esmeralda called out.

The girl turned around and offered them a shy greeting.

"Where is everybody?" Phoebus asked.

The girl looked surprised. "Haven't you heard about those boys?"

Esmeralda instinctively put her hand on the silver knife hidden under the waist of her jeans. "No."

"The other night they found two teenage boys dead in the woods," the girl explained. "Their throats were ripped out, so at first they thought it was an animal attack, but now they're saying it's possible they were actually _murdered._"

Esmeralda and Phoebus immediately turned and ran back to the dorms. They burst into their friend, Belle's room, startling her roommate. Belle was reading a book at her desk and didn't even look up.

"We need a moment alone with Belle," Esmeralda said to Belle's roommate.

Belle's roommate nodded and quickly left the room. Phoebus locked the door behind her and Esmeralda sat down on Belle's bed.

"They're here," Esmeralda said.

"What do you mean?" Belle asked. "Who's here?"

"There are vampires in Sherwood," Esmeralda clarified.

Belle closed her book and looked up at her friends. "Is this about the murders?"

"Yes," Esmeralda said.

Belle nodded. "Yeah, I've been reading about them and I think you're right."

"Why would vampires come _here_?" Esmeralda asked.

"I'm not sure," Belle replied. "More importantly, though, we need to find out _where _they are. Just because they fed here in Sherwood, doesn't necessarily mean they're in town. They could be anywhere within a hundred mile radius of here."

"How are we going to find them?" Esmeralda asked.

"I'll do some research and see if any similar killings have been reported nearby. Meanwhile, you two notify Hercules and keep a sharp eye out," Belle instructed.

::VV::

Belle had been searching the internet for hours and was beginning to get sleepy. She shut down her computer and got into bed. She had been able to find out the vampires were somewhere within twenty miles of Sherwood, but she couldn't pinpoint an exact location.

Just then her bedroom door slowly creaked open. Belle rolled over and wrapped her hand around the machete next to her bed. A shadowy figure stepped into the room and closed the door. Belle sat up as her light flickered on. She knew in an instant the woman standing in her bedroom was a vampire. The vampire approached Belle's bed.

"Where is The Hunter?" the vampire snarled.

Belle held her machete out in front of her. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I can hear your thoughts, Belle," the vampire said. "I know you're working with vampire hunters. Where is The Hunter?"

Belle glared at her, but didn't respond. The vampire growled.

"We knew you would be difficult," the vampire said. She grabbed Belle by her hair and dragged her into the living room.

A muscular vampire was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed in front of his chest. Belle gasped when she saw Tiana lying unconscious at his feet. Belle struggled to get away from the female vampire.

"Let her go!" Belle demanded. "She has nothing to do with this."

"Of course she doesn't," the female vampire said. "But we need a little leverage. When we have The Hunter, we'll return your friend."

"Yeah right," Belle spat. "How do I know you won't kill her?"

The female vampire pulled Belle up so she was eye level. "If we don't get The Hunter, we _will _kill her."

"And what if I do know where The Hunter is?" Belle asked. "I don't even know your names, let alone where to find you."

The female vampire smiled, revealing her fangs. "I'm Vanessa and that's Gaston." She let go of Belle. "Finding us is up to you. Think of this as a little game. But, I'd hurry if I were you. How long do you think a human will last when surrounded by vampires?"

Then, in a flash, Gaston picked up Tiana and they disappeared out the window. Belle ran towards the window, but they were gone. She let out a frustrated cry and hit the wall. She hurried back into her room and called Hercules.

"Belle, what is it?" Hercules asked, sleepily.

"The vampires were here and they took Tiana!"

::VV::

Jane woke up early to Tiana's alarm clock blaring. She groaned and pulled the blanket over head. She waited for Tiana to turn it off, but it just kept going.

"Tiana! Your alarm!" Jane mumbled.

When Tiana didn't respond, Jane sat up. To her surprise, Tiana was not in the room. Jane sighed and got out of bed. She turned off Tiana's alarm and dragged herself out to the living room. Charlotte was sitting on the living room floor, with some homework sprawled out around her, while Roxanne was straightening up the dorm.

"Where's Tiana?" Jane asked, to neither of them in particular.

Roxanne looked up, confused. "She didn't come back last night."

Jane frowned. It wasn't like Tiana to stay out all night when she had class in the morning. "Maybe she's with Belle."

Jane was just about to get her phone to call Belle, when there was a knock on their door. Jane answered and Belle hurried inside.

"Is Tiana here?" Belle asked, somewhat frantically.

"She didn't come back last night," Jane said, repeating what Roxanne had just told her. "We thought she was with you."

Belle shook her head. "No."

"She probably just pulled an all-night study session at the library last night," Charlotte said. "I'm sure she's fine."

Belle nodded, though she didn't seem convinced. Belle was a worrier and always assumed the worst.

"Did you hear they're ruling those boys' deaths as murders?" Roxanne asked, changing the subject as she neatly stacked some of Charlotte's magazines on the coffee table.

Charlotte shuttered. "That's awful. Who would so something like that?"

Roxanne gave Charlotte a very serious look. "Vampires."

Charlotte rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, Roxanne; vampires don't exist."

"Yes they do," Roxanne said. "And I'd bet my tuition money they killed those boys."

"Why would _vampires_ be in Sherwood?" Belle asked.

"Vampires go where their clan leader direct them," Roxanne said. "Now, _why _a vampire clan leader would choose Sherwood, I don't know. But, frankly, they don't really need a reason." She paused. "Although, it's _possible_ they could be running from a hunter-"

"Or trying to find one," Belle muttered.

Roxanne shot a Belle a shocked look. "I suppose," she said slowly. "It wouldn't be completely unthinkable for vampires to be after a hunter if that hunter killed members of their clan."

"Really?" Belle asked.

Roxanne shrugged. "Sure. A vampire clan is like a family. So, if someone killed a member, or members, of that family the rest of the clan would avenge them."


	4. Chapter 4

"We've got the trap in motion," Kida told her clan. "That bookworm hunter will try to save her friend and she'll lead the other hunters right to us."

"They know it's a trap," Meg said. "There's no way they're all going to show up together."

"There's also no guarantee they know who The Hunter is," Jasmine pointed out. "He could be working alone."

"One less hunter is one less hunter," Kida said. "We will kill every hunter until we find the one who killed our king."

"Kida's right," Helga agreed. "We can't let any vampire killer live."

"Humans feel the same way about other humans being killed," Aladdin said. "Why should vampires be allowed to kill and not humans?"

Aladdin never wanted to be a vampire and still has compassion towards the human race because of this. But, he was in love with Jasmine and he knew the only way they could be together is if he was vampire. However, he never killed humans; he got his blood supply from blood bags and animals.

"Humans kill each other every day, but you don't see a group of hunters going after human killers," Adam said. "They come after us because we've been branded as monsters."

"You _are _monsters!" Aladdin spat.

In an instant, Adam was across the room and in Aladdin's face. "Don't act like you're better than the rest of us!"

"Stop it!" Jasmine cried, stepping between them.

Adam looked down at Jasmine for a moment, but then returned to his spot on the other side of the room. Jasmine gave Aladdin a pissed off look and he realized that in his little outburst he had been referring to her as a monster as well.

"Jasmine, I'm sorry," Aladdin said.

Jasmine shook her head and walked out of the room. Aladdin quickly went after her.

"Anyways," Kida said. "One of you needs to keep an eye on our new prisoner. Naveen, that will be _your _job."

"What? Oh, come on, Kida! Why do I get stuck babysitting?" Naveen whined.

"Because you're the only one who will be able to control yourself around a human for a long period of time without killing them," Kida said.

"What about Aladdin?" Naveen asked.

"He'd let her go," Vanessa said, as if it were the most obvious statement.

Naveen rolled his eyes. "Fine."

"She's in the basement now," Kida told him.

Naveen nodded and headed down towards the basement.

::VV::

Tiana slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She was in complete darkness and couldn't see anything. She sat up and tried to remember what happened. The last thing she remembered, though, was walking Belle to her dorm after the game.

When Tiana's eyes finally adjusted to the dark, her heart raced in panic; she was in some sort of cage in someone's basement. She screamed, which was immediately met by someone laughing. Tiana looked to her right and saw a young man stretched out on couch, drinking something out of a wine glass.

"No one can hear you," he said.

"Who are you?" Tiana asked. She wanted to demand him to let her go, but she knew that would be pointless. Captors never let their victims go just because they told them to. Tiana had watched enough movies to know that much.

"My name is Naveen."

"What are you going to do to me?" Tiana asked.

"Maybe I'll kill you, or maybe I'll let you go," Naveen said. "It all just depends."

"Depends on what?"

Naveen took a sip of his drink. "It just depends."

Tiana looked around the basement. Other than her cage, the couch and a guitar hanging on the wall, the basement was completely empty. Across from her, about twenty or thirty feet away, was a tall staircase. Tiana couldn't see the top of it, but she knew it had to lead to the door out of there. Her plan was basic: find a way to unlock the cage, wait until Naveen was gone, then sneak out.

Tiana had no idea the situation she was in.

::VV::

"No, not yet," Charlotte said into the phone as she paced around the living room.

It was now late that night and Tiana still hadn't come back to the dorm. Her boss had even called and said she didn't show up for her shift. Jane and Charlotte were beginning to get worried, while Roxanne still held onto her vampire theory. Finally, Charlotte just called the police, even though Tiana hadn't missing for twenty four hours, yet.

"You don't understand," Charlotte was saying, "it's not like her to be out this long and not show up for work." She let out a frustrated groan. "Listen, lady; our friend could be anywhere and while you guys are sitting on your asses, waiting for that stupid twenty four mark, something bad could be happening to her!"

"The police can't do anything if vampires have her," Roxanne muttered.

Charlotte shot her a dirty look and then walked into the kitchen. "You _sympathize_? A lot of good that's going to do if she ends up dead!" She snapped her phone shut and slammed it down on the counter.

"Looks like we're on our own for a while," Jane said.

"We have to go look for her," Charlotte stated.

Charlotte went into her room and then came back out a few minutes later, holding a map of the campus. She sat down on the couch and Jane and Roxanne joined her.

Roxanne pointed to a spot on the map between their dorm and Belle's. "This is where we split up. That's the last time I saw her."

Belle's dorm looked close on the map, but there was actually a pretty wide, empty grassy patch that separated the two buildings. Unfortunately, the woods weren't far from the campus and they knew it would be best to look there first.

"We can't go out looking for her alone," Jane said.

"I already tried getting a hold of Hercules, but he's not answering," Charlotte said.

"Look, I know you guys don't believe me about the whole vampire thing, but I know it's the truth," Roxanne said. "So, either she's dead, or they're using her as bait. Though, the former is more likely."

"Would you stop it!" Charlotte snapped. "There is no such thing as vampires."

Roxanne ignored her and went into their room. When she came back, she was holding two necklaces. She handed one to Jane and Charlotte.

"Cross necklaces? Can you please take this seriously?" Charlotte demanded.

Roxanne narrowed her eyes at Charlotte. "I am."

"Let's not argue," Jane said, slipping the cross necklace over her head. "We don't know what happened to Tiana and we have to assume that whoever got those boys could have Tiana, too."

"Vampires."

Jane looked over at Roxanne. "We've all seen the photos of those boys on the news and we can't deny that they were killed by having their throats ripped apart. They're ruling it as murder, so we should really take Roxanne's suggestion into consideration."

Charlotte frowned. "There are no-"

"I know, Lottie," Jane said. "But we have to keep our minds open; Tiana's life could depend on it."


	5. Chapter 5

Charlotte finally got a hold of Hercules and he agreed to help them look for Tiana, but he insisted that his friends Esmeralda and Phoebus help, too. Jane and Charlotte were grateful for the extra help, but Roxanne didn't think it was necessary.

Now Charlotte, Jane, Hercules and Roxanne were standing outside of the girls' dorm building. Roxanne crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked skeptically at Phoebus and Esmeralda as they approached.

"We should split up," Roxanne said.

"Won't it be safer to stay together?" Charlotte asked.

Esmeralda started to say something, but Roxanne interrupted her. "No, not if we're dealing with vampires."

Hercules, Esmeralda and Phoebus all looked at Roxanne with wide eyes, but Charlotte just rolled her eyes.

"Give it a rest!" Charlotte snapped. "Your stupid theory isn't helping anyone."

"Anyways," Roxanne said, ignoring Charlotte, "if we _are _dealing with vampires, staying in a group is a bad idea."

"Why is that?" Hercules asked.

"Because the smell of blood will be stronger." Roxanne's tone suggested this was common knowledge and she couldn't believe she was answering the question.

Esmeralda and Phoebus exchanged glances. "Well the three of you can't go out alone. One of us-" Phoebus motioned at Hercules, Esmeralda and himself- "should go with you."

Roxanne protested, but in the end gave in since she knew arguing would just waste time. Jane got paired up with Phoebus and the two of them headed into the woods.

"Roxanne's theory is...interesting," Phoebus said after a couple minutes. "What do you think of it?"

Jane tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I don't know. I don't _think _vampires are real but, at the same time, Roxanne is really smart and I don't think she would spend so much time on something that doesn't exist."

"And what if vampires _do _have Tiana?"

Jane let out a small laugh. "Then I'm really glad we have Roxanne."

A rustle in the trees caused them both to stop and look around. There was another rustle, this time it was clear it came from their right. Phoebus pivoted his body so he was facing the noise and put his arm protectively in front of Jane. A figure stepped out from behind a tree and Jane's heart started racing. She wanted to run away, but Phoebus was making no attempt to move and she didn't want to risk being alone. The figure stepped closer and Jane could now get a better look at him. Her breath caught when she recognized him as the guy she had seen at the coffee shop. Even in the dark, mixed up in all the fear, he still looked beautiful. His skin was so white it was easily seen in the dark.

Phoebus quickly drew a knife that had been concealed in a sheath around his waist. On instinct Jane took a step back. The man let out a small growl and lunged at Phoebus. Jane stumbled backwards. She watched as Phoebus and the man engaged in hand-to-hand combat. The man clearly had the upper hand, but Phoebus was stronger than he looked and was holding his own. Jane knew she should run, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The two of them continued to fight for several more minutes before the man shoved Phoebus hard, causing him to fly backwards into a tree. Phoebus collapsed on the ground and didn't move.

Jane stood there, frozen, completely unsure of what to do. She stared at Phoebus for a long time, before turning her attention to the other man.

"He's still alive," the man said.

"Wh-what do you want?" Jane stammered.

"I don't want anything."

"Then why did you attack Phoebus like that? Do you have Tiana? Please give her back."

Jane was so scared that it took all of her energy not to start crying.

"I don't have anybody."

"I-I don't understand; what is going on?"

"I was looking for you."

Jane's eyes grew wide in shock. "Why?"

"I've been hoping to run into you again since I saw you at the coffee shop the other night."

"Why did you attack Phoebus?"

"I wanted to have a moment alone with you. I assure you he's fine."

"No offense, but you're really creeping me out." _It figures the best looking guy I've ever seen would turn out to be a creepy stalker,_ Jane thought.

"I apologize. That was not my intention."

"What _was _your intention?"

"I just want to talk."

Jane looked over at Phoebus and then back at the man. "Okay... but just don't touch me."

The man held his hands out in front of him in surrender and then sat down where he was standing. Jane looked around, but then sat down as well. They were only five feet away from each other.

"What's your name?" Jane asked.

"Eric. What's yours?"

"Jane."

"That's kinda pretty."

Jane blushed. "Not really; it's common and boring."

"I like it."

Jane raised an eyebrow. "You don't have to try and flatter me; I'm clearly not running away."

Eric laughed. "You're right; I'm sorry."

"I forgive you, but don't let it happen again." Jane was surprised at how comfortable she was around Eric. She couldn't believe she was joking around with the man who just knocked out her safety partner.

"I know you already think I'm creepy and this probably isn't going to help, but I have something for you, Jane." Eric reached over and grabbed a satchel that had been sitting on the ground. He rifled through it, then pulled something out and held it out to Jane.

Jane leaned forward and took it from him. She stared at him for a moment, then looked down at the object in her hands. It was the sketchbook she had admired at the coffee shop. She ran her fingers over the lettering on the cover: _"The Colors of the Wind Will Lead My Heart to You"_.Jane smiled in spite of herself.

"I saw you looking at it and you told the lady you couldn't afford it," Eric said.

"So you bought it for me?"

Eric nodded. "I'm sorry if I crossed a line."

Jane stared at the sketchbook. "No, not at all. That's actually really...sweet."

"Not creepy?"

Jane looked up at him and smiled. "Well, maybe a little. But, I'll let it slide."

"Jane, would you like to go out with me sometime?" Eric said. "Maybe meet me at Coffee Potts tomorrow night around nine?"

Jane nodded. "All right."

Phoebus started to stir and groaned. Jane glanced over at him. She then turned to look back at Eric, but he was gone.


End file.
